Westminster Shorter Catechism
The Westminster Shorter Catechism is a catechism written in 1646 and 1647 by the Westminster Assembly, a synod of English and Scottish theologians and laymen intended to bring the Church of England into greater conformity with the Church of Scotland. The assembly also produced the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Westminster Larger Catechism. A version without Scripture citations was completed on 25 November 1647 and presented to the Long Parliament, and Scripture citations were added on 14 April 1649.
Background
On
In 1643, the Westminster Assembly, which was designed to bring the two national churches into greater conformity, was convened at the height of the English Civil War to reform the Church of England. When the Solemn League and Covenant was as a result signed between the English and Scots the Assembly's work also became the framing of "four points or parts of uniformity": a Confession of Faith, Form of Church Government, Directory for Worship, and Catechizing.[2]
Composition
Although the church in Scotland (the Kirk) had produced The New Catechisme according to the Forme of the Kirk of Scotland in 1644, it was aimed particularly at children and youth, and was not adopted by the Westminster Assembly of Divines.[citation needed] Twelve or fourteen of the members of the Westminster Assembly had produced catechisms themselves prior to the Assembly. Herbert Palmer was one of the most respected catechists in the country, and it was expected that his catechism, first published in 1640, would be the basis for the Assembly's. It appears that this idea was abandoned by the committee assigned to the catechism after some work in 1645, followed by another failed attempt at a single catechism from the Summer of 1646 to 14 January 1647
At this point, the committee decided that it would need to produce two catechisms rather than one, as the needs of ministers and children were very different. The committee also decided to wait until the completion of the
Anthony Tuckney is believed to be the most influential of the committee members on the Catechism. The previously published catechisms of James Ussher and John Ball, as well as the theology of William Perkins were also relied upon,[4] however many of the similarities between the Assembly's Shorter Catechism and earlier ones may be explained by the common theological vocabulary of the time.[5] The Shorter Catechism was largely based on the Larger Catechism, though the Shorter may have incorporated more of the earlier abandoned catechism than the Larger. It was sent to Parliament on 25 November 1647, a little over a month after the Larger Catechism. Scripture citations were added on 14 April 1648.[6] It was passed Parliament 22–25 September[7] and ordered to be printed with the title The Grounds and Principles of Religion Contained in a Shorter Catechism.[8] The Church of Scotland approved it in July 1648, and it passed the Scottish Parliament in February of the next year.[6]
Form and content
The purpose of the Shorter Catechism is to educate children and others "of weaker capacity" (according to a preface written by the Church of Scotland) in the
The catechism is composed of 107 questions and answers. The first 12 questions concern
The most famous of the questions (known to a great many Presbyterian children) is the first:
Q. What is the chief end of man?
A. Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.
Legacy
The Church of Scotland approved the Westminster Shorter Catechism in 1648, and thereafter it was the manual for instruction. However, because a significant portion of the Scottish Highland population spoke only
In 1675, the Presbyterian Thomas Vincent in London published a popular exposition called The Shorter Catechism Explained. Later, Reformed catechisms such as the 1693 Baptist Keach's Catechism mimic the Westminster catechism on most points except infant baptism.
The Westminster Catechism is mentioned in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, chapter eight, in reference to Pearl's ability to bear a fair examination by this catechism.
See also
- Robert Moffat (missionary) — 19th century missionary in South Africa, who translated the Westminster Catechism into the Sechuana language.
References
- ^ Kelly 1994, pp. 104–106.
- ^ Kelly 1994, p. 107.
- ^ Kelly 1994, pp. 109–110.
- ^ Kelly 1994, pp. 110–111.
- ^ Leith 1973, p. 37.
- ^ a b c Kelly 1994, p. 111.
- ^ Paul 1985, p. 519.
- ^ Carruthers, William (1897). The Shorter Catechism of the Westminster Assembly of Divines. p. 33.
- ^ Green 1996, p. 17.
Bibliography
- Green, Ian (1996). The Christian's ABC: Catechisms and Catechizing in England c. 1530-1740. Oxford: Clarendon Press.[ISBN missing]
- Kelly, Douglas F. (1994). "The Westminster Shorter Catechism". In Carlson, John L.; Hall, David W. (eds.). To Glorify and Enjoy God: A Commemoration of the 350th Anniversary of the Westminster Assembly. Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust. ISBN 0-85151-668-8.
- ISBN 0-8042-0885-9.
- Paul, Robert S. (1985). The Assembly of the Lord: Politics and Religion in the Westminster Assembly and the 'Grand Debate'. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. ISBN 0-567-09341-7.